In high end automotive applications, the performance of an automobile may have to be compromised to ensure that brake rotors do not fail under use, where they are subjected to extraordinary levels of wear, compressive force, and high temperatures. The rotors of the automobile need to be strong enough to withstand the torque and compressive forces generated during a major stopping event, placing a lower limit on how thin and therefore how light a rotor made of any given material can be. Constructing a rotor based on a ceramic truss structure will allow for a lighter part which still retains enough strength to survive the forces generated in high-load braking events. Decreasing the mass of brake rotors can greatly improve automotive performance in two ways: 1) lightening the rotors decreases the unsprung mass in an automobile's suspension system, greatly increasing handling response, especially over rough terrain; and 2) lightening the rotors decreases the mass of a rotating part, which will greatly improve acceleration as rotating parts require both rotational and translational energy to move.
Also, saving weight is of a particular priority for an aircraft. For example, by decreasing the weight of a disc braking system, any aircraft which uses such a system would see a direct benefit. As such, there is need for a light weight and high performance friction-and-wear apparatus that can, for example, be applied to aircrafts and/or high end automobiles (i.e. racing) where carbon/carbon and carbon/ceramic composite brakes are frequently used.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,764,628, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety, describes a process of creating a carbon/carbon composite wherein the carbon fibers typically used are replaced with carbon nanotubes. Although the structure described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,764,628 has applications for brake construction, it does not possess long range order and/or structure of a micro-scaffold.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,767,022, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety, describes the creation of a structure having long glass fibers. Again, although one of the applications for the structure described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,767,022 is listed as high friction brake pads, this structure does not have any organized structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,855,428, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety, describes the fabrication and use of a boron carbide ceramic composite for use in aircraft braking systems. Again, there is no mention of a structured framework in U.S. Pat. No. 6,855,428.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,261,981, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety, describes the fabrication of structure having a fiber reinforced ceramic composite specifically for use in high performance braking systems. Once again, there is no mention of creating the composite with an organized framework substructure in U.S. Pat. No. 6,261,981.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,086,814, which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety, describes a method for manufacturing a SiC based friction element by infiltrating silicon into a porous carbon shaped structure and pyrolizing the infiltrated structure to create a SiC part. The applicability of the finished part to brakes and clutches is mentioned in U.S. Pat. No. 6,086,814, but it does not provide for creation of a part with an organized framework-like structure.
U.S. Patent Publication Nos. 20060062987, 20060244165, 20060186565, 20030057040, and 20040241412, which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety, all describe variations on manufacturing ceramic/metal/carbon composites for use in braking systems. However, as with the patent references described above, none of these patent publications provide for the possibility of arranging any of the ceramic, metal, or carbon components into an organized framework.
In view of the foregoing, although current high performance braking systems use a carbon/carbon, ceramic, or a carbon/ceramic composite for its rotors and/or pads, these composites do not provide for or propose making a braking system that utilizes an organized framework substructure as a component in a composite. That is, these current composites are formed from a random network of particles or fibers dispersed throughout some matrix, and none of them utilize constructing parts wherein one of the components of the composite exists as an ordered or organized framework. The random orientation of the composites used in current braking systems is their weakest point; replacing the same systems with a composite which exhibits long range and short range order can increase thermal conductivity and strength to weight ratio, increasing overall performance. As such, there is a need for a micro-truss based composite friction-and-wear apparatus with a three-dimensional ordered microstructure that can be both light in weight and high in performance and a method creating the same.